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Nora Jane Tate

2009-04-20T16:39:00.000-07:00

Nora Jane was born on April 10, she weighed 8 lbs, 9 ozs, and 20 inches long. We are so happy she is a part of our family...we love her so much. I was so happy that I had the day off of work so I could visit little Nora on the hospital soon after she was born.

I think she looks a lot like Ella in this picture.

I just love these next pictures. Ella wasn't able to hold Nora when she was first born. Nora had some minor complications at the beginning...she was hooked up to all kinds of wires and such. The first time Ella saw Nora was through the windows. I just love Ella's face in these.

These were taken two days later at Jules & Justin's on Easter. Nora has a couple little scratches on her face from the tape they used to keep the wires in place.

Here are all the kids right before the easter egg hunt.

Oh, and the proud parents are Jamis & Dawn. She's a keeper you guys!!

Lou Lou

a few of my favorite things...

2009-02-07T12:40:00.000-08:00

Favorite Album: Lykke Li - Youth Novels

I can't tell you how many times my cubicle neighbor at work has told me turn my music down in the last two weeks. It's all because of this album. I can't help but sing along and dance in my seat. My two favorite songs on the album are "I'm Good, I'm Gone" and "Little Bit" which can both be heard here on her MySpace page. I just saw that she's on tour and of course she's not coming here. Lame.

Favorite Food: Annie Chun's

As a single lady who is constantly on the run...hahaha, just kidding. But seriously this stuff rocks! See where it says "Ready In 1 Minute"? Annie is not lying. It literally takes a minute to cook and it's soooo good. I have everyone in my office hooked. It's not too pricey either. About the same as a Lean Cuisine. There are a ton of different flavors but the Chinese Chow Mein is my favorite! Also, if you like sticky rice but find it kind of a pain to make. Well you're in luck. There is also a sticky rice bowl that she has that also only takes 1 minute to cook. And it's good sticky rice. Check out the website here.

Favorite Movie of 2008: Slumdog Millionaire

If you haven't seen this movie yet, do it. Do it now. It's up for numerous Oscars this year including best picture. This is the first year that I've seen all the nominated pictures and it definitely deserves to win. I love anything Danny Boyle directs but this is by far my favorite of his. Just see it. You'll love it. You can see the trailer here. Oh, and the soundtrack is great too!

Favorite Movie at the Sundance Film Festival: Push - Based On The Novel By Sapphire

So this year the big winner at the Sundance Film Festival was Push. It's based on a novel by the African-American poet Sapphire. I've never read the book and to be honest I don't think I will. This film was definitely hard to watch at times. The story centers on an illiterate and obese African-American teenager in 1980s Harlem who is pregnant with her father’s child — for the second time — and is also abused by her mother. It's not a true story, thank goodness, but you have to think that this kind of stuff happens ALL the time. Like I said, it was very hard to watch at times but at the same time it was so inspiring how the main character, Precious Jones, rose above. The girl who played Precious was amazing and it was her acting debut. She had never done anything before. But it was the performance by the actress Mo'Nique who blew my mind. I had no idea she had it in her. She's a comedian who I had never really been that impressed with. She plays the villain in the film and she does an amazing job. I don't care what movies come out from now until the end of the year but I believe she should win the Oscar for best female lead. And it wasn't until recently that the movie even got picked up by a distributor. There was talk that maybe it wouldn't get picked up because of the subject matter but I'm so happy that Lionsgate finalized the deal this week and bought the rights for 5.5 million. It now it looks like Oprah and director/actor Tyler Perry are behind the film so you know that will help it a ton. Read this article to read more. Others who make cameos: Mariah Carrey, who surprisingly was awesome! (I never thought those words would come out of my mouth about her acting) And the gorgeous Lenny Kravitz who I fell in love with a little more if that was even possible. I highly recommend this film but if you choose not to see it I would totally understand and if you hate it I would also understand.

Loves,

Lou

I'm tired from all the bloggin.

2009-01-24T13:41:00.000-08:00

Are you happy people!?!? Three (now four with this one) posts in one day is more than I did all last year. I promise to post more to keep you updated on my exciting (non)social life. I tend to go into hibernation mode in the winter so I feel like I haven't really been doing anything too exciting. This last week was the Sundance Film festival and I've been busy with going to some films. It's the only thing I look forward to in the winter. For the most part I saw some really good movies. I discovered I am not a fan of "video art"...maybe at a museum or something but not 93 minutes of it. I still have the 2 "Best of Fest" movies on Monday so those will be the end until next year.

Like I said I promise to post more often and take more pictures with my new camera which I'm loving.

Loves, Lou

Stuff White People Like

2009-01-24T12:54:00.001-08:00

I just laughed so hard reading this. Check it out. This describes like 95% of my friends not even kidding and (I hate to admit) myself .

Here are some of my favorite "Stuff White People Like"...

#118 - Ugly Sweater Parties

#106 - Facebook

#104 - Girls With Bangs

#100 - Bumper Stickers

#97 - Scarves

#90 - Dinner Parties

#88 - Having Gay Friends

#79 - Modern Furniture

#74 - Oscar Parties

#67 - Standing Still at Concerts

#64 - Recycling

#63 - Expensive Sandwiches

#57 - Juno

#52 - Sarah Silverman

#50 - Irony

#48 - Whole Foods and Grocery Co-ops

$47 - Arts Degrees

#42 - Public Radio

#41 - Indie Music

#40 - Apple Products

#39 - Netflix

...oh gosh, just read the list. I like them all!!!

Christmas

2009-01-24T10:38:00.000-08:00

Here are some of my favorite pictures from Christmas with the kids.

Photo Booth

2009-01-24T10:13:00.000-08:00

I just got around to scanning these from Kyong and Donnie's wedding. They were married September 28th. It was a weekend of festivities up at Sundance with a lot of really great friends. At their reception they had a photo booth and it was the biggest hit. We had so much fun with it. Here are some of mine...

Camera Broke

2008-12-10T06:32:00.000-08:00

So my hand-me-down camera broke a while back. That's the main reason I haven't blogged in years. I've been in need of new glasses for a while now and I've been trying to decide between buying a new camera or new glasses...they're about the same price. I decided on buying myself a camera for Christmas.

This is the one I'm going to get (I like the brown). Nothing too fancy but it will work just fine.

That's all.

Sorry Kelly...

2008-04-26T10:27:00.001-07:00

I had to do it.

For some reason this picture makes me really happy.

Holy Crap!!

2008-04-24T16:59:00.000-07:00

I know, I know, it's been a while since my last blog. I never have time at work anymore and until now I didn't have a computer. My friend Donnie just sold me his three year old ibook for super super cheap (practically free). I'm so excited to finally have a laptop. Donnie and Chris have been teaching me all kinds of cool stuff...they're big Mac nerds.

I want to start posting more pictures, so that means taking more pictures. I was thinking of posting a picture a day of whatever floats my boat. I'm a little obsessed with the blogger, Dooce. If you aren't reading her I highly suggest it. She's actually a local blogger from Salt Lake, but is one the most read blogs in the nation. She posts a picture a day of different things and they're great.

Chris helped me with setting up some programs on my my laptop and we decided to have a mini bbq on his porch last night. It was a good night.

Here he is at the fancy table we set up.

I'm off to the Jazz game!!! Go Jazz!

2008-01-17T09:51:00.000-08:00

We went up to Park City this weekend and went to brunch at Cisero's. This was a sign in the front lobby. I thought it was hilarious!!

It's a Snow Party

2007-12-12T08:08:00.000-08:00

I live in the Marmalade District near the Capitol. My house is on a corner at the bottom of two hills, one is a lot steeper than the other. Friday night I was getting ready to meet some friends and I looked out side and it had started to snow really bad. About ten minutes later I heard the loudest thud and felt my apartment shake. I looked out my back window and saw a car with it's hazards on in the middle of the street. I went outside to this...

...and then five minutes later this...

Needless to say I didn't end up going out that night, for two reasons: First, my driveway was pretty much blocked that I couldn't get my car out. Second, my whole neighborhood came out and hung out for a good 2 and a half hours watching all the cars slide down the hill. We had the best time ever. One girl brought out warm cookies she had just baked. Another guy brought out drinks for everyone. I've lived in my apartment for six months and didn't know any of my neighbors. Now I know most of them.

This is my new friend Chuck.

These are all the nice policemen that hung out with us.

The next morning I went to check out the damage on the corner and someone had built a snowman out of some of the wreckage from the cars.

I know where I'll be during the next snow storm.

Happy Thanksgiving

2007-11-20T14:07:00.000-08:00

Today at work we had a Thanksgiving lunch. Everyone signed up to bring something. I decided to bring the traditional yams and marshmallows. I've never made these before in my life (obviously). I put a ton of marshmallows in forgetting that they would expand under the heat. At least they tasted good.

Marcus Bently

2007-11-20T13:48:00.000-08:00

Saturday night a bunch of my friends and I went to see our friend Marcus play at the Hogs Wollow. Everyone needs to go listen to his music...he's very talented. Amelia's Roses is one of my favorites. Seriously check him out. Here are some pictures from that night.

It was also his birthday so this is everyone singing to him.

The Office...again

2007-10-22T11:39:00.000-07:00

RollingStone.com has posted a list of the 25 greatest moments from The Office.

I was going to list my favorite but I can't, they're all great.

Enjoy!

Salt Lake City Library

2007-10-19T11:31:00.000-07:00

So today is my day off and I find myself at the library. Secretly I'm a big nerd (ok maybe not so much a secret) but I LOVE the library. I come here at least once a week. I check out books and movies and just hang out. They have these great windows that look over 4th south. They also have very cool events here all the time.

I love the library. Thanks mom for always pushing us to read. My love of reading comes from you.

Sophie

2007-10-05T06:55:00.000-07:00

So for the last couple weeks I've been house/cat sitting for a friend while she's in Europe. That's right, CAT SITTING!! Anyone who knows me knows that I do not like cats. Never had and until now thought I never would...then Sophie came into my life.

It's only been about the last week that she finally started warming up to me. If I was watching tv she would usually just come up to the couch and meow at me or wag her tail in my direction wanting me to pet her. She finally started sitting on my lap and snuggling with me at night...I love it. Every once in a while I had to poke her because she was snoring. Angel keeps her very well groomed. She pretty much shaves her whole body but leaves her feet and face furry. It looks like she has little booties on.

One day last week I'm watching tv and I look over at Sophie and she's sitting. Like sitting sitting, like a human. She's sitting on her bum with her little belly sticking out. I laughed so hard...she looked so funny. And she just sat there not even caring that I'm laughing at her. She did it again last night. This picture does not do it justice but it's still pretty funny.

Angel gets home tonight so I said my goodbye's to Sophie this morning. I'm gonna miss her.

Pushing Daisies

2007-10-04T10:18:00.001-07:00

Holy moly, best new show of the season. If you're not watching this you're missing out big time! Totally original story line. I especially loved the set design and colors...if you liked Amelie, it has that same feeling. There is a cool clay-mation scene in the beginning of the episode. I can't wait to see where they take this show. I just hope it doesn't get cancelled like all the good ones seem to do.

I love the name of the pie shop "The Pie Hole".

abc.com now let's you watch episodes of a lot of their shows online. Lucky for you this is one of them. Watch it people!! I promise, you'll thank me.

And let me know what you think of it.

The Office

2007-10-03T08:23:00.000-07:00

This show makes me happy.

From Entertainment Weekly.

There is no way you will find The Office's set unless someone tells you where to look, and even then, it ain't easy. Buried deep in a swath of Van Nuys warehouses, the soundstage sits at the rear of a dead-end street where 18-wheelers turn around and the hot sun bakes the concrete blister gray. The first thing that catches your eye is a sign for Vance Refrigeration, and then another for a paper company by the name of Dunder Mifflin. Soon you're idling past that familiar parking lot, the very spot that's been home to both a tear-jerking confession of unrequited love and a ridiculous bouncy castle intended to catch the faux-suicide attempt of an unhinged boss desperate to prove a point.
On this mid-September day, though, the anonymous lot, clogged with trailers and craft services, is almost unrecognizable. Inside, you're ushered into a small room just off the stage, and things become more familiar. Two monitors transmit shaky, nausea-inducing images from the mockumentary cameras: boxes of paper, drab carpeting, venetian blinds, a poster of some very scary babies. You watch an ordinary day in the life of The Office unspool as cast members wander in one by one to talk about how blessed they feel to be a part of this show. But that's where the conversation starts and ends: They're reluctant to spill any details about the series' fourth season, which started Sept. 27. If they do, it seems, executive producer Greg Daniels — described by one actor as ''the most quiet badass you'll ever know'' — will kill them. So here we are in a tiny room on a dead-end street in an industrial section of Van Nuys not being told anything. In a way, it's appropriate: a very awkward story on the awkward genius that is The Office.
Bear in mind, there was a time when this show couldn't give it away, and we're not talking about secrets. The first season, in 2005, averaged but 5.4 million viewers for NBC, thanks to apathy fueled by the critical suspicion that only lunatics would attempt to adapt a beloved British series for American television. (The disaster known as Coupling had just come and gone two years earlier.) Yet there were flashes of unique hilarity, which led to a charitable second-season pickup — and that's when, like employees on soft pretzel day, the fates began to align. In the summer of '05, star Steve Carell wowed crowds with The 40 Year-Old Virgin; season 2 won the Emmy for best comedy; millions of new viewers discovered the show via the magic of iPods (makes a great Secret Santa gift, by the way); and little by little, the emotionally stunted, frequently spastic, and cringe-worthy antics of Michael Scott (Carell) and the Dunder Mifflin crew scrambled from the ratings basement toward something approaching cult success. Last year, in season 3, the show became a demographic power player — ranking 13th for all programs that were watched live or within seven days of broadcast by those ridiculously important 18- to 34-year-olds. Plus, cast members besides Carell started showing up in movies — a Blades of Glory here, a License to Wed there. Two weeks ago, Daniels won another Emmy, this time for writing. And now it appears that The Office, no longer feeling the ax over its head, is in a position to tell a national magazine with a not-inconsiderable circulation that they won't be disclosing all that much information about season 4, and they hope we understand.
We don't, of course. So we push harder until they finally begin to crack.
'We're going to have stories of disease, misery, jealousy, lawsuits, car wrecks, homelessness, betrayal, financial ruin, broken hearts, and kidnapping, but funny,'' relents Daniels at last. ''Oh, and a pencil sharpener goes missing.'' See, that wasn't so hard, was it? But wait, there's more! Jan (Melora Hardin) takes her cohabitual relationship with Michael to the next levelby trying to redecorate his condo; one story line in the first few episodes involves Angela's (Angela Kinsey) sick cat, Dwight's (Rainn Wilson) irritation, and the phrase ''claw marks in the frozen peas.'' A large part of this season's focus will be on Ryan (B.J. Novak), the former temp-turned-corporate suit who is now basically evil. His attempts to force the company into the digital age will mirror a real NBC social-networking website brewing at dundermifflininfinity.com, while his attempts to distance himself from spurned ex-girlfriend Kelly (Mindy Kaling) will prove less than successful. On the day we visited the set, Michael was holding a pizza delivery boy hostage over an unhonored coupon. And in staffing news, kooky crank Creed (Creed Bratton) and Darryl from the warehouse (Craig Robinson) have been upgraded to series regulars.
What about Jim (John Krasinski) and Pam (Jenna Fischer)? Fischer uses the word ''courtship'' in reference to the next phase of their relationship — ''There's something about Jim and Pam that is true love personified in a TV show,'' she says sweetly — while bemoaning how painful it is to stare up at the much taller Krasinski after breaking bones in her back in a fall during the off-season. Daniels, of course, is vague, making reference only to ''a soap opera-y thing that I'm gonna let be a surprise.'' We nod, smile, and think to ourselves: What is this, Lost?
Outside of plot specifics, though, the employees of The Office are more than happy to talk about whatever you want. They'll tell you who's loud in his trailer (Krasinski, who claims it's everyone else who's coming over and making noise) and who's the most likely to lose it in a scene (Kinsey, but she's getting better). They crack on each other, jump on each other, and slow dance with each other between takes. They even haze reporters: Ask Carell or Daniels to define awkwardness, and they'll just sit there and stare at you, as the tape recorder quietly creaks. After an agonizing stretch of silence, you realize, Oh, right. Then they'll smile, and you will, too, because you fell for it. Twice.

As Novak puts it, somewhat more delicately, ''It is a perfect creative environment.'' And a comfortable one: Ask Krasinski — who appears alongside no less than George Clooney in this fall's Leatherheads — if his burgeoning movie career is going to lead him to pull a Caruso. ''You mean like leave this show?'' he asks, familiarly wide-eyed. ''There is not even an inkling. It's given me everything. The fact that I could go do a movie and then 'come home' to this? That's the best of both worlds.'' Carell agrees. ''I'm not taking any of it for granted,'' he says, for clearly the umpteenth time. ''I never want to assume that anything will continue. That way, it's a constant surprise when it does.''
Of course, it helps to have the head of the network in your corner: Ben Silverman, the man who brought The Office Stateside via his production company, Reveille, was named co-chairman of NBC Entertainment this spring. From his perspective, the comedy is no longer struggling to find an audience, but defining what viewers want to watch. ''You look at the motion pictures this summer, and you see things like Superbad and Knocked Up deliver huge box office,'' he notes. ''The audience is growing up now, and alternative styles are becoming mainstream.'' The question is, How much farther into the mainstream can The Office climb, given that the series has to face off against Grey's Anatomy and CSI in its new Thursdays at 9 time slot (which Daniels calls '' the worst around'' )?
The cast seems none too concerned about sexy docs or forensic geeks. ''We just need to do what we do well, and do it weller-er,'' says Wilson. ''The great thing about Greg Daniels is he's always interested in subverting the humor. Twisting it, and going into darker, weirder, more off-kilter places.'' Ten minutes later, the actor is out on the set, sniffing the hand of the guy who wields the slate, and giggling maniacally right up until that slate comes down, the director says, ''Action,'' and — well, something happens. We'd tell you, but they'd kill us. Awkwardly, no doubt.
Want more of The Office? See Jenna Fischer and John Krasinski dish on what to expect as the Pam/Jim love story picks up this season, plus an exclusive Pam performance by Fischer when EW video goes to The Office. Then, read what the actors who play Michael, Dwight, Pam, Jim, and the rest of TV's craziest coworkers say about the Dunder Mifflin crew — and where they see the Office-mates going from here

THIS IS RAD!!!

2007-10-03T07:49:00.000-07:00

Read a banned book today

It's Banned Books Week, and several events are being held all over the country to celebrate our freedom to read.

Believe it or not, titles are still being banned and challenged in schools and libraries. Frequently challenged books in 2006 included Cecily Von Ziegesar's Gossip Girl series, Toni Morrison's The Bluest Eye, Robert Cormier's The Chocolate War and Stephen Chbosky's The Perks of Being a Wallflower.

What can you do to celebrate Banned Books Week? The official site offers some tips and links to its MySpace page. If you're looking for some reading material, here are the top 100 books challenged from 1990-2000, according to the Office for Intellectual Freedom.

Go here to read the first chapter of The Perks of Being a Wallflower.

How many books have you read on the list?? I've read 24.

Entertainment News

2007-10-03T06:54:00.000-07:00

(For Jules) Stephenie Meyer's young-adult novel Twilight is coming to the big screen.

Here's an interview with Sarah Silverman about the second season of her show that starts tonight. I'm so excited!!! Some people hate her...I think she's awesome.

Another show that starts tonight is Pushing Daisies. It's getting excelent reviews so far.

Natalie Portman has signed to do a movie with Jake Gyllenhaal and Tobey Maguire. Well, I have to see it...it has my boyfriend Jake in it.

...that's all for now.

Camera

2007-09-13T15:19:00.000-07:00

This is what I'll need to make this blog more interesting.

Hint, hint...wink, wink. Spread the word.

Happy Birthday Ansley!

2007-09-12T06:54:00.001-07:00

Things I love about Ansley...
Her freckles.
Her little raspy voice.
Her sweet tooth.
Her love of dresses, shoes, purses, the color pink.
Her friendship with Ella.
Her love for her family.

I LOVE YOU ANSLEY!!!